When Nightmares are Present
by Wolflover77
Summary: Jack gets caught up in a seemingly normal fight with Pitch... which turns into a battle for his life, and the light of the entire world. Pitch's relentless torture will test the boy's sanity, along with the other Guardian's. Pitch will not give up until he has what he wants... or at least until Jack breaks completely and utterly... T for language and violence/gore
1. Chapter 1

**Rise of the Guardians: When Nightmares are Present**

_By: Wolflover77_

_Enjoy!_

_**~Please don't forget that I own nothing, and to please review with questions or comments! And please read the notes following this chapter!~**_

_**So, guys, I've found a new obsession. (big surprise, I know) but trust me, I'm just getting back into this; High School is killing me! An NO! I have NOT abandoned my other stories. Danny Phantom is just an older fandom of mine, and it requires new ideas and more time. As this story was basically pulled out of my butt, and was written in an hour. Please enjoy! (Slight language and gore, but don't worry. If you know me at all, you know in chapters to come, that will change to much more gore and language (; )**_

Something wasn't right. Within all his years of being of supernatural nature, he had felt many things go wrong… but nothing has caused his chilled heart as much anxiety and fear as this moment in time did. Something tugged at his stomach. He couldn't tell if something was actually hurting, or he was just so scared that his stomach felt as if something had been shoved in it and twisted multiple times.

He lurched forward, his bare toes curling into the snow, as he heaved. Nausea was overcoming him. _What the hell is wrong? _

He felt as if he was going to pass out; dizziness and fatigue were overwhelming him at this point. Twisting one hand in his hair, the other on his churning stomach, he looked up from the red tinged snow. His vision gave him no comfort; he could not see a thing through the blurry haze that had somehow become his sight. He could just make out a dark, sinister looking figure when he stiffened.

_Red snow? I'm either really out of it or-_

He lurched again, but this time involuntarily. Something had _definitely _struck him this time. He spun and landed on his behind, weak elbows catching in the thick snow to try and break his fall. Adrenaline did its job, and Jack was finally able to wipe his eyes with the sleeve of his hoodie and retaliate in a matter of seconds. He was on his feet again, staff in hand, ready to fight whatever beast was waiting for him. When he saw the man clothed in dark before him, his eyes widened and time seemed to cease. Memories of the hour beforehand replayed itself in his mind. His breath hitched in his throat- how could any of this be truly happening? Jack was a Guardian… none of this was supposed to happen. North and Bunnymund had promised him no one would get hurt this time. How could this have happened?

_It was just the two men. The elder, clothed in black with swirling vortexes of darkness churning beside him, chuckled maniacally, golden eyes glinting with malice. The teenage boy with snow white hair and little experience with this dark magic, stood in a ready stance, wooden staff prepared to impale the elder with ice icicles if needed. _

"_my boy, you look so serious, so… determined." The dark one said. _

_They stood like wolves about to attack. Each about twenty feet from the other. Close enough to talk to one another, but far enough not to cause damage. Jack sneered, and shifted his staff so he held it more like a walking stick._

"_Old man, do you ever think about wearing brighter colors? I mean, sure black is slimming, but… c'mon man. If you're gonna be "Mr. controller of Nightmares" don't you think you better have a better wardrobe?" Jack grinned, leaning forward on his staff as if it were there as a crutch. The scowl that overtook the elder's face was disgusting. Jack even stopped smiling from his funny quip; he was a professional now. He couldn't afford to piss the enemy off with his sarcastic mouth._

"_Listen, Pitch. Can we just talk this out over a nice cup of hot choc-"_

"_Silence! You idiotic waste of matter! Shut your childish mouth before your antics make me truly angry!" The dark one shouted, his voice echoing throughout the snowy mountaintops all around. His hand shot forward, dark crystallized sand extending in tendrils from his fingertips. The dark matter twisted itself in various different shaped and forms through the snow, entangling itself in Jack Frost's feet. The darkness was strong; Jack was held in place by the strong force, and began to try and maneuver his way out of it. _

"_It's no use my boy. My nightmares are stronger than the happiest dreams. The less you're tedious fidgeting endures, the less chance you have of ending you're pathetic, life." The elder, now identified as Pitch, said as he stepped forward. His boots crunched in the snow, and within seconds, his face was inches from the boy's. _

_Jack's eyes widened with fear. He's never been this close to the King of Nightmares before. It make his heart beat quicker, and his mind jump around to subjects he didn't want to think of. Jack was scared. He called himself immortal; they all did. But in all truth, everything that lives, has to, some how, someway, have an end. Every single one of the Guardians, and even Pitch… if injured fatally enough, would reach their end. This thought made even Jack Frost shiver, because he knew undoubtedly that Pitch Black was more than capable of inflicting major pain to his being._

_Pitch's slender hand caressed Jack's chin, bringing Jack's eyes to look into his. The elder was significantly taller than the frostling, which made Jack feel even more so inferior. _

"_what do you want," Jack said through clenched teeth. Pitch's grip wouldn't allow his jaw to unclench fully._

"_My boy! Have you not been here for the past year? I shall just say it then- I want your dreams. I want them to become mine to make into frightful nightmares as I please. I want all of the Guardian's dreams, as you all dream the strongest. I want the joy and happiness of this world to be sucked out of every child, and brought into my palms so I may do as I please. So that I may take them and disperse back to the world what they have not experienced. To make the world dark and cold; a comfortable place for someone like me to live," Pitch explained, grinning as he did so. Jack tried to free his head of his grasp, hut the elder has hands of steel. Jack used to enjoy fights with Pitch; they exchanged quirky remarks to one another, fought a decent fight, and most of the time Pitch ran away with his tail between his legs. But something about today… about this setting. It was just… off. Pitch wasn't as sarcastic as usual; in fact, Jack had never seen the man this serious before in his career as a Guardian. And perhaps that's what frightened Jack. Pitch was serious. Dead serious. He had planned out all his motives, and was ready to attack._

_It was disgusting. Jack's disapproval showed in his features. He couldn't let the world shrivel up into a ball of dead hopes and broken dreams. He would have no children to play with… no children to believe in him. He didn't want to go back to those dreadful days when no one thought he existed. Those were in his past… he never wanted to relive them. _

"_Jackie! Why the gloomy features? Don't you know that this will benefit you as well dear boy?" Jack's eyes darted back to Pitch's. "Ah! At last I have your attention. See my boy… I know what you're thinking; no more cheerful faces means no more believers… which means no more Frosty boy," Pitch caressed Jack's cheek, looking deep into his eyes. Jack shivered with disgust. "But this is hardly true boy. Think- all the world in darkness. You're pretty familiar with darkness, right boy?" Tears were brought to Jack's eyes. How dare he bring up those times! "After all, you live with cold, sleep with freezing… you're inner core is practically ice. And what does one think of when they hear of darkness? Correct! Ice…cold. Jackie boy, we will thrive together! We will feed off the darkness and become stronger than ever!"_

"_That wouldn't make people believe. No one would see us." Jack mumbled. _

"_Oh, but they will. They will _fear_ us Jack. After all, if they fear us, that means they know we exist, right? We will make the world our own! We will live with the dark-"_

_Jack's arm that held his staff moved quicker than he had ever moved it before. Driven by anger and despair, he called upon the ice in his core to destroy Pitch. To rid the world of his evil plans. But just as quickly as Jack's hand had shot up, Pitch's free hand stopped it. The world froze. Jack's left wrist was held by Pitch's right, Jack's face still in Pitch's free hand. The elder squeezed his right hand with all his might, looking deep into the boys eyes. Jack refused to let go of his rod. Ice shot out in spurts as Jack's agitation grew, but Pitch held fast. What seemed like hours passed with the two gazes locked on each other, until finally, something snapped. It was not the snap of North telling his reindeer to "mush!" nor the snap of sandy's fingers to make up for his not being able to speak. No. It was Jack's own wrist, and with the vast amount of ground and snow before them, it echoed, making the tears sting worse in the boy's eyes. Jack's hand opened up, fingers stiff and palm open. His staff fell with a thud to the snow below. He let a cry of agony rip from his throat as soon as his numbed hand could feel the pain of the broken bone._

_Jack held back his tears. Pitch must be stopped at all causes, whether Jack be the one to do it or not. .He still had his right hand free, along with a minimal amount of stored energy. While Pitch was chuckling t the boys screams, disgustingly relishing in it, Jack pulled his uninjured arm back into a fist, and drove it right into the elder's jaw. No cry of pain escaped his lips, only a low guttural growl from deep in his throat. Pitch's hand dropped from Jack's face, and went down to his side. The tendrils unraveled themselves from Jack's feet, and he collapsed to the ground on his bottom, cradling his cracked wrist in his right arm. Pitch looked unshaken. _

"_You have chose you're side of this war boy. Now it's time to end the persuasion and proceed to the fighting!" Pitch practically screamed, raising his arms and calling forth a thin, but rather sharp pointed tendril of darkness. Jack was still in shock, he barely noticed the tendril coming down at high speed. However, when the tendril proceeded to dig deep into his side and leave a deep wound, deep enough to blur his vision and cause him inability to think straight, Jack was shaken from his delirious state, and driven into one of confusion and anxiousness. He barely remembered Pitch's long grin as a terrible scream erupted from his lips. _

This time, Jack actually proceeded to throw up. He lurched again, closing his eyes and grunting as his stomach wound opened wider. He looked down. His once beautifully embroidered blue snowflake hoodie was now torn down the side, and his pants were drenched in blood. He had never seen so much of his own blood at once… the snow only seemed to be getting redder. He looked up from the crimson snow, and up to the enemy that stood before him. Everything that he most feared had just happened in a matter of minutes.

And now, as he had always feared, was time for war to be waged.

**So guys, I know I've been out for quite a while, just my personal live catching up with me. I've actually had a lot of stuff to do in my English honors class, and I think it has helped to improve my writing dramatically!**

**But I can't conclude that statement entirely true until I hear from you, my dear readers!**

**Please, feel free to review with suggestions, comments CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM, and please keep in mind **** I honestly have no other knowledge or background info on anything having to do with Ride of the Guardians, except for the movie. I read a couple pages of the books, but I don't know the legitimate background info, so pardon any mistakes on account of that.**

**Otherwise, hope you enjoyed!**

**~Wolflover77 **


	2. Chapter 2

Rise of the Guardians: When Nightmares are Present

By: Wolflover77

Enjoy!

EDITED. Here's the second chapter! I got one review on the previous one that made me smile real big (; I'm glad to know you guys are enjoying this! My mind is a twisted place, so if you don's like blood/gore, evil, and torture, YOU SHALL NOT PASS. Ha, nahh... you just might not like this story. Read on, faithful followers!~

Head throbbing.

Chest aching.

Senses on alert.

Water dripping.

Drip... drip... drip...

It paused for a time.

Drip.

"Gahhh, c'mon" Jack sat up, holding his head. _Seriously dude, what's up with the creepy dripping water? It's been doing that for hours. North needs to call the magical plumbers of the North Pole. _He thought.

"That was a damn scary dream..."

His eyes remained closed as he sat all the way up. Shaking hands made their way to frosty blue eyes to rub away the remnants of a horrible dream.

_His torso was bleeding terribly. Pitch stood above him, cackling. His wrist was stinging... Pitch was going to steal all the children's dreams and make them into nightmares... he wanted Jack to join him!_

"Whaa.." Jack mumbled to himself as he opened his eyes. Vivid images flew in front of his eyes like a movie screen. He jerked back, crying out in horror. His back slammed against a rock solid wall, and the right side of his chest screamed with pain. Something cold and wet dripped from his chest to his leg. Jack shivered. His wrist was numb and felt limp. His nightmares had been confirmed; that was certainly the wound from his battle with Pitch. He gulped in horror. Their base in the North Pole didn't have solid, cold, rock walls. He was wounded, and in some unknown place.

"Great. Merry freaking Christmas." Jack muttered, managing not to have a panic attack upon realizing his "dream" was actually reality. He looked around, icy eyes trying to make out the dark space before him.

After an hour of holding his side, cradling his wrist, and contemplating everything that could've happened he realized that he must have passed out from blood loss. He grimaced as he looked at the jagged wound; it was blood crusted, hadn't been cleaned, and was intensely red with infection. He put all attention to his uninjured wrist, and made it as cold as possible. Placing it on his side he sighed. That would make it numb enough for him to focus on the problem that was at hand.

He continued to force himself to remember the minor details his fatigued mind seemed to have forgotten. His face squinted in concentration and annoyance. Several minutes passed before anything came to his mind.

_Scream, palm opened, crack, staff lost._

_He had no weapon._

_Pitch laughing, lying on the ground, red snow, blurred vision._

_He had definitely passed out._

_North's face. Tooth's face. Bunny's face. Scared. Worried..._

_Wait that never happened..._

Jack's eyes grew wide as he remembered his friends. He had left them alone, his last words to them, "I'll be back soon, I promise! Pitch has nothing on this macho teenager!"

Tears brimmed his eyes. He let them slide down his bruised cheeks. He had failed his friends. Pitch had him locked up in an unknown location and was probably on his way to annihilate all traces of light and happiness from the human race.

_SLAM!_

Jack nearly jumped ten feet off the ground. The door to his cell slammed open, and a creature he had never seen before appeared in the doorway.

"Pitch here. He see you now." The unrecognizable creature said in an uneducated voice. Jack scooted further against the wall, half expecting to go straight through it and sink into the depths of the unknown. Of course, though, that didn't happen with Jack's continuing bad luck.

Pitch nonchalantly walked in, seemingly floating. He couldn't see the nightling's feet... his black robe draped over his thin body and cascaded down to the floor, completely concealing his legs. It was an odd sight.

"Wakey wakey Jakie," Pitch cooed, smiling down at the boy. His smile actually pained Jack. It was so terrible; there was so much lust and malice in that smile. It wasn't a smile like the ones you get on Christmas or on your birthday. It was mocking happiness. He smiled because of other people's pain.

"I am awake you bastard. I've been awake for hours." Jack grunted, coughing. He tasted blood. Wonderful.

Pitch gave a fake look of surprise. "That's no way for a Guardian to speak!"

"Like you would care," Jack muttered, turning his head to the side to cough again.

"Pardon?" Pitch said, cupping his ear to listen to Jacks reply. Jack looked up at him, but said nothing.

Pitch flared with anger. "I've had it with your childish attitude!" Pitch's anger seemed to come out of nowhere. He lurched forward and picked Jack up by the collar of his torn sweatshirt, causing a surprised yelp to escape Jack's lips.

"W-what? I haven't done anything to you old man!" Jack realized his mistake as soon as he said it. He was in deep now.

Pitch growled. "I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that. I may be old boy, but in this body there is more knowledge and wisdom than you will ever come to posses. I would keep you mouth shut if I were you, if you didn't want anything else other than what I have planned to happen to you."

"What could you possibly have planned, jerk" Jack's fatigue and pain were speaking now. He cringed as he realized what he's said. He didn't want to know what Pitch was going to do to him. He wanted to co home. He wanted to cuddle up in his cold bed and watch the snow fall. To hear the Christmas music... after all it was Christmas season. Wasn't there supposed to be cheer and joy being spread?

"Heh, boy you have no idea where you are do you? This is my lair. I rule here. Your powers are practically useless, while mine are amplified more than you can imaging." Pitch chuckled, and slammed Jack against the wall. He took his free hand and grabbed Jack's wounded side. His dark magic swirled in tendrils around the wound. At first Jack was surprised.

At first, the pain in his side seemed to subside. Jack was stunned. He sensed something had to be amiss. "Why are you healing-" Jack's eyes widened in fear as intense pain shot from his torso to his neck, down his arm, all the way to his feet. Jack screamed. Louder than he thought possible.

Pitch giggled. "Boy, pain worse than this is in store for you if you keep your attitude up. But Back to the point of my visit," Pitch did not let Jack down. The frost spirit was panting, more blood flowing. "You made your point back in that ice wasteland. You wish to stick with the Guardians. I respect your choice to fight for the good of humanity, but I have done some thinking. You are a powerful boy Jack, you just do not know how to use your powers to their fullest yet. And I can't have someone like that running around foiling my plans, now can I? So I'm giving you two options: you freely choose to join me and avoid any torture methods I have in store, or the more painful route. Your choice, child"

"I'm not joining you Pitch." Jack spat. Pitch stood, unflinching. He had expected that answer from the ignorant child.

"So be it. You chose the painful path for yourself, but the fun path for me." Pitch grinned. He dropped Jack to the ground with a thud. Pitch used his foot to flip the frost boy onto his back. Using his darkness, he grasped Jack's wrists, ignoring his whines of pain.

"Pitch stop," Jack muttered. Pitch kicked him in the side. Jack tasted more blood.

Dark tendrils wrapped themselves around Jack's wrists, and Pitch made him stand up on weak legs.

Jack stopped thinking. He stopped trying. He was doomed. The last thing he heard before lowering his head and tuning all else out was Pitch's smut remark.

Pitch chuckled. "You thing that wound is bad, wait until you see what else I have in store."

So? I wrote this at 1:00. I have midterms to study for, ewwuh. But I pulled this out of my butt! I didn't go into any of the torture scenes, because in order for those to be good, my brain has to be at least half awake. Ha, well review and tell me what you would like to see, and I'll take it into consideration for sure!

~Wolfie


	3. Chapter 3

Rise of the Guardians: When Nightmares are Present

By: Wolflover77

Enjoy!

**Sorry for the wait! I went back and edited the chapter before this. I wrote it super late, and it had dome pretty severe mistakes. This chapter might contain strong gore/ torture for some people, so please, be cautious. I don't want people vomiting all over their computers _ enjoy! And revier!**

Jack had finally come to the conclusion that there was no light in the unknown place. Torches scattered the stone walls here and there, but otherwise, it was almost complete darkness. Pitch's leather boots clucked against the stone floor as they meandered their way through seemingly endless hallways. Jack coughed, causing him to stumble forward and crash to the ground. His hands were bound together by thick dreamsand, making it impossible for him to cushion his fall. His head cracked against the cobblestone floor, wounds reopening and wrist throbbing.

Pitch turned around, glaring at the pitiful boy. "You… you are a worthless," the man's booted foot pulled back and slammed into Jack's ribcage. "pitiful, useless, undeserving, waste of space," Pitch proceeded to kick Jack with every negative adjective that spilt from his lips. Jack felt tears fall freely from his tired eyes. He was so numb, physically. He could barely feel the pain any more. What he truly felt were the words. They stung. They burned his inner soul as he imagined the fires of Hell would feel like.

Jack couldn't stand the endless kicking and name calling, so he pulled his legs and arms so he was in a crawling position, and stood. Pitch snarled and yanked on Jack's hoodie.

"You're a little brat. I cannot stand your stupidity, it is disgust- Ah! Here we are," Pitch turned, facing a large black door. It was thick, and engraved with tiny nightmare horses and wandering skeletons. Jack gulped; this place just kept getting more terrifying.

_Maybe… just maybe, MiM will cut me some slack… I don't know if I can take this much longer… I haven't even been here for a day yet. Or have I? Oh hell, I can't tell… there aren't any windows. No windows to see the snow fall. Snow like I used to play with Jamie in… _

Pitch's cold hand slapped Jack's mind out of his fevered thinking. "Stop daydreaming boy. It's time for your nightmares to begin."

North sat at his large desk, toying with a tiny wooden soldier. Christmas was in less than two weeks, and without Jack, the snowfall had decreased, and the spirit of Christmas was draining from the Worlds' population. Jack was special… he had a way of bringing cheer and joy to the children. Santa knew from the moment he had been accepted as a Guardian that he would be of great use. But now that he was gone, the children were sad. The other guardians didn't know what to do with themselves… Jack had grown on them very much over the past months. And now that he had been taken from them, war had been waged. And it was time to do something about it. North grunted to himself, getting up from his chair.

On his way out of his office, he handed the wooden soldier to one of the Yetis on guard. The Yeti made a whimpering sound as he looked at the toy closely.

It looked exactly like Jack.

Bloodcurdling.

That is the only word to describe the scream that erupted from Jack's mouth as Pitch twisted another corkscrew into Jack's pale skin. Pitch had twisted five of the spiral metal objects into the frostling's body already, and now he was inserting another, just above his shoulder.

Jack lay, arms above his head, restrained by thick leather straps on a rough stone table. His hands were tightened into fists, and his wrists were raw from tugging and twisting. Jack twisted his head from side to side, lifting his right shoulder off the stone to try to get Pitch to stop twisting the sharp metal into his skin. Five agonizing minutes later, Jack lay panting, while Pitch stood smirking.

"Boy, I've told you many times already. If you had chosen my side, we could be sipping a nice cup of coffee by a nice fire right now. But since you chose to be the hero, you must accept the fact that you are now my prisoner. And as part of my plan, I need your nightmares. Your dreams are so genuine… you rarely dream of evil. Therefore… your nightmares are far more powerful than the average person's. And in order for you to have terrible, teeth chattering nightmares, I must _break you._" Pitch was inches from Jack's face. He smirked, placing a hand on the boys shoulder that didn't have the corkscrew in it. "You know Jackie, you're a very handsome boy…" Pitch leaned forward, extremely close to Jack's face. He smiled, revealing sharp teeth, and ran his long, slimy tongue along the teenager's scarred cheek. Tears brimmed Jack's eyes.

He was never getting out of here. Not as the old Jack Frost, anyway.

**Hope you enjoyed! More to come, review please!**

**Wolfie~**


	4. Chapter 4

Rise of the Guardians: When Nightmares are Present

By: Wolflover77

Enjoy!

**I have nothing more to say other than read on! This chapter contains language, sexual themes, and the usual gore/ torture. You have been warned (: enjoy!**

She had always held Jack close to her heart. He was a sweet, caring boy, always sacrificing himself for the good of others… especially the children. They had that in common. She cared deeply for the children she collected teeth from, and Jack cared very deeply for the children he played with- the ones that believed in him. She had been there those nights when he couldn't sleep… when he would lie in bed crying, quietly as not to wake the other guardians. He and Tooth had a special connection… she had always felt the teenager's warm smile, despite his cold exterior, brightened her day.

But now that Pitch had taken him from her and the rest of the guardians, war had begun. Pitch and Jack had been in several quarrels before; Tooth always had to nurse Jack's injuries back to health. Despite their many battles, whether Jack won or lost, he _always_ made his way home.

North stormed into the room, Bunny soon following. Sandy had dozed off.

"This is ridiculous!" North exclaimed, slamming his fists down on the coffee table located on the far left side of the room. His back was turned toward the other guardians, hiding his grimace of utter disgust.

"Santa, this will all be worked out. We've got an army trained and ready to kick Pitch right back in the ass. You've just gotta have faith, mate." Bunny said, placing a furry paw on North's shoulder. Bunnymund's ears twitched with agitation.

North turned around. "I presume you're right," he said, glancing at one of his Yetis. North walked closer to Tooth, Bunny following. "After all, we _are_ guardians. We should know damn well what faith is…"

"And if you don't have faith Santa," Tooth said "how will any of us?" Tooth stepped aside, revealing several tear stricken faces of tiny fairies, and angry looking Yetis. North smirked.

"Ready the troops we have prepared. It's been three days too many. Pitch will learn to respect the guardians, whether he likes it or not." North said, as he looked at his comrades. It was time for them to take action.

Another silent whimper.

Another slice made into his pale skin.

"Jackie," Pitch cooed as he walked around the stone table with his hands placed formally behind his back, grasping the silver dagger of choice he'd been using to torment the boy. "I simply asked you a question. The least you could do for me would be to answer it. Considering you've managed to piss me off in every way possible since your arrival." The elder smirked at the boy's shivering form. His sweatshirt was bloodstained and torn. He could see the bloodied gauze through one of the tears in the hoodie where one of his minions had miserably failed t wrapping Jack's wounds. His jeans were tattered as well, along with his sneakers. He was helplessly squirming in his restraints.

It made the sadistic man smile with glee.

Jack's cries continued; sobs of utter pain and terror tore from his lips and tears ran from his eyes till they slid down his ears and fell onto the table. He clenched and unclenched his fists, tugging with all the energy his arms and legs would allow. His mind was fevered, his body working on auto-pilot. He hadn't eaten in days, and had not been allowed sleep. At least, he hadn't been allowed voluntary sleep; Pitch had knocked him out several times to plague him with nightmares for his own pleasure.

"I will ask once more boy, and then I think you know what will happen. You must learn your lesson… I can't have disobedient prisoners. Now," Pitch was once again inches away from the boy's face. Jack gulped. He didn't want to hear the question again.

_This isn't real. It's not happening. He's messing with me. He's the devil. FOCUS Jack. Escape routes. Healing remedies. Anything but this…_

"Where is the boy Jack? Where is Jamie?"

**R**aging hooves and loud whinnies could be heard throughout the stables. The reindeer were bucking and grunting, eager and ready to go. Jack was always the one to slip them little peppermints or small chocolates- he always pet them in their sweet spot, and knew every single one of their names, even the ones that weren't Santa's top eight employees. Once North had explained to them the reason for his absence, they had gone wild. North was proud that he had such a courageous army ready to fight… he just didn't know if it would be enough. If they didn't hurry, Pitch could have already gotten ten times more powerful.

After much coaxing of angry reindeer, Santa made his way back inside for a nice cup of hot coco to calm his frazzled nerves. And then it was off to Pitch's lair.

Bunnymund stood gazing out the window in his room at the vast landscape of the north pole. Tiny elves and yetis played, cheeks red from frost and smiles innocent with joy. Santa had made a point not to tell the little ones about Jack's disappearance… he didn't want to cause any more panic than was necessary. Tooth stood behind Bunny, a soft hand on his shoulder.

"You know he'll make it. He'd never quit on his favorite kangaroo." Tooth tried comforting. Bunny's nose twitched, adding the faint traces of a smile to his face.

"Aye mate. I know he'll pull through. But… that doesn't mean he's gonna be the same as before. I know Pitch. He'd do…" Bunny sighed and looked down. Glancing back up at Tooth Fairy he continued. "he'd do anything Tooth. Terrible things, disgusting things to get what he wants."

"Jack wouldn't go down without a fight. He's strong-"

Santa burst into the room. "Fellow guardians, it is time. Jack is waiting. Gather your things… we leave in three minutes."

_**S**_creams. More screams. Grunts of pain. Cries of terror.

"You're a fucking idiot if you think I'm telling you where he is." Jack groaned. Pitch had used his dagger to slice Jack's sweatshirt off. He was bare-chested and vulnerable. The left side of his neck had been bruised badly. His right collarbone was shattered. His ears bled from screaming and yelling. On of his ribs was broken so badly he could see how crooked the bone was through his thin, pale skin. His old wound in his side had been reopened, and a new slice had been opened near his waist.

Pitch had been through several torture instruments; his dagger didn't have the effect he wanted, so he had smashed the boy's collarbone with a hammer. He decided to save the rest of the corkscrews for when he needed them… Jack despised them. When Jack's screaming became too loud and obnoxious, Pitch put him to sleep and tormented him with nightmares. When he awoke again, the man aked him the same question he'd been asking for hours. He still had no answer.

Jack lifted his head, wincing at the pain that shot down his spine. Pitch's nightmares were getting worse. Killing off all of his friends…. Killing Jamie… and now… sexually assaulting him? What was this man trying to accomplish?

"Did you like my last dream Jack? I made it special… just for you," Pitch said, caressing the boy's broken collarbone. Jack yelped. "But you have yet to answer my question…" Pitch pulled out a sharp blade, waving it in front of the frostling's face. "Where. Is. The. Boy?"

Jack squirmed in his leather straps and closed his eyes. Pitch Black made a low _tsk tsk_ sound with his mouth, and moved down to the lower portion of the boy's body. The elder ran his slender fingers down the boy's chest, stopping quickly at the elastic of his boxers. He toyed with it until Jack began fidgeting with all his might, shouting out for him to stop. Jack's back arched off the table, in an attempt to buck Pitch's hand off of him. Pitch growled and firmly grasped Jack's hips with both hands, and slammed him back down onto the table. A loud cry erupted from Jack, and his eyes opened wide. Jack's right hip had been cracked, and it felt like utter hell.

Pitch smirked, and held one hand on his fractured hip, while jabbing the blade deep into the skin right above the waistline of Jack's pants. He dragged it across the skin, erupting howls from Jack's body. Pitch simply smiled. At this rate, Jack would break in a matter of days.

**Sorry for the brutal torture… I guess it's just a way I express the pain I feel inside on nonexistent characters _ Speaking of which…. I might not be uploading as frequently, or at odd times, because I have some issues. I've been battling Bulimia for years, and I'm finally getting some help. So, reviews would make me smile!**

**Wolfie~**


	5. Chapter 5

Rise of the Guardians: When Nightmares are Present

By: Wolflover77

Enjoy!

**Hello my dear little monsters3 Oh, how I have missed this story! I hope I wasn't too long… So I'll just cut to the chase. Enjoy!**

**This chapter is dedicated to anyone struggling with self image issues, abusive relationships, or troubled minds. Please, find peace. I am here for you.**

_Jack knew exactly where Jamie was. He and his family were on vacation in Italy, taking a break from the usual routine of everyday life. Jamie had been bouncing up and down on his bed, spewing out thoughts of complete and utter joy to Jack about their upcoming vacation. Jamie, with his young age, had never had the chance to escape daily life other than usual summer beach trips and the occasional trip to a big city like New York or Vegas. This out of the country stuff was new and exciting, and Jack loved the smile it put on the young boy's face. _

"_Jack, you should soooo come! It would be so much fun! Like, we could see the coliseum and like pretend we're…" Jamie stood on his mattress and struck a heroic pose. " mighty gods! And we could-"_

"_Jamie," Jack chuckled, "calm down before you explode. You know I can't come… I have to protect everyone from the…" Jack made a silly scary face and stuck his hands out as if he were a zombie " the Boogeyman!" Jack and Jamie fell onto their backs in fitful laughter. _

"_Jack, you're the best friend I could ever ask for." Jamie said, suddenly ceasing his laughter. A large yawn took over his lips, and Jack sighed. _

"_C'mon buddy, it's time for bed. You gotta rest up so you can catch your plane tomorrow!" Jack said, pulling back the covers for the boy to slip under. He gently tucked him in and departed the room with a smile. _

**A** backhand to the face. An uppercut to the jaw. Pitch was getting restless. They both were.

"I checked the boy's house Jack! He's _not there_." Pitch's voice almost seemed insane. He had given up on his torture devices hours ago, and proceeded to use his bare hands as weapons.

Several cracked ribs later, Jack still hadn't responded to the question.

"Shall we use the corkscrews again? I think they are extremely unique… twisting into that pale skin of yours. Erupting those terrified squeals from your throat," Pitch wrapped his slender fingers around Jack's neck. The boy grunted and looked away from the man.

"Do what you want. I won't tell you." Jack said through clenched teeth. Pitch released his throat and eyed the corkscrew in his opposite hand.

He held it up to examine its intricate design… Jack shivered.

_Someone actually took the time to make this torture weapon…_

Pitch was smiling maniacally and was about to make another snitty remark, when all of a sudden, he stopped. Dead still.

Jack would have been happy for the reprise, if it hadn't been for the toothy grin plastered onto the man's face.

"Well, Jackie," Pitch sniggered. "It looks like we have some company coming to join our happy get together."

Jack's senses went on red alert. His skin tingled. His eyes widened. His breath stopped.

"Let's give them a warm welcome hmmm?" Pitch smiled, and waved his hand. Black sand swirled in a circular mess until it took on the shape of a mirror. Jack saw his bloodied face and the man's sadistic smile. Pitch tapped the glass with his index and the crystal rippled. The ripples faded and the reflecting surface became smooth. Jack no longer saw himself.

He saw all of his fellow guardians.

And Pitch snapped his fingers.

He might as well have snapped Jack's neck as well. The frostling broke into a fit of panic induced kicking and screaming, tears streaming.

**N**orth's rear end was on top of Bunny's knee, Tooth's feathers were getting crushed and sandy couldn't utter a word to explain his extreme discomfort. The sleigh wasn't very large, but it would have to do.

The path in the sky to Pitch's palace was a rough one. They tumbled through the air, getting knocked back several yards by gusts of wind or being slightly blinded by tiny snowflakes clinging to their eyelashes as they drove forward.

_Snowflakes. Jack. _

There was no conversation during the journey. Tooth glared off into the blackening night sky. The beautiful sunset they had seen earlier had disappeared as they drove deeper and deeper into the cold, dark air that led to Pitch's lair. She couldn't help but think… no one was talking.

Ones' mind tends to wander to dangerous subjects when not otherwise occupied by conversation. She prepared herself for the worst… Jack's body unable to be healed, bones protruding, blood stained snowy hair. She even pictured the boy's lifeless body, Pitch standing over it smiling with pride. She thought these things so that if Jack turned out to be in better shape, she would be delighted. If he was found to be in terrible shape, she would be prepared.

"North, we don't have a plan of action. What if he's expecting us. What if he has troops waiting for us?" Tooth suddenly said, forcing the gruesome images of Jack's tortured form to the back of her mind.

Bunny's ears perked up. "Aye, she's right mate."

"This I know… but we not worry. I am determined to walk in fight with strong fist and straight face. No worries." North said, his meaty fists clutching the reins tighter.

But Tooth felt in the pit of her stomach that they _should_ be worried. They weren't dealing with any blood-craving evil mastermind. They were fighting against Pitch Black. The Boogeyman.

Bunny twitched his ears, and Tooth just about cam out of her skin. She jumped around to face Bunny, arms in a battle stance.

"Sweetcheeks, you need to calm your feathers," Bunnymund said laughing. Tooth huffed out.

"I know Bunny. I'm just so worried." Tooth said. She was on overdrive. Every sound pr movement she sensed she jumped, ready to fight.

"There is absolutely nothing to worry-" Bunny's ears drooped. "there _was_ nothing to worry about."

Before them was an army of black stallions and skeletons made of black dust. They wielded shields and swords, and the entire crowd, all 666 of them, cackled with maniacal laughter.

**Teehee! T'was a fun chapter to write! Not much torturing going on, but I had to move the plot somehow. As much as we all love the torturing of Jack, I've got to add some good plot development in there!**

**Please review or PM with suggestions! Corrective criticism is always appreciated! I love getting better!**

**Wolfie~**


	6. Chapter 6

Rise of the Guardians: When Nightmares are Present

By: Wolflover77

Enjoy!

**You guys are honestly the best people ever. Writing is my escape from everyday life, and to hear that people are eager to read more of my writings honestly makes me smile.**

**XOXO**

**Now, to my dear reviewer SAVANAH who has been reviewing constantly, asking me to continue my writing. This is for you sweetie:**

**(you didn't review under a username, so I couldn't exactly message you this, so I hope you read this!)**

**I am so glad to hear you love my stories! It makes me quite happy to know there are people like you out there! I respect your opinions and love your comments. **

**Now, regarding my stories "disappearing", I have a reason. I haven't been on this website for quite some time, and all of my other stories are old… and my writing skills weren't all that great at the time cx So I took down a few of the ones that weren't very popular, and do plan on rewriting them to post them again. So don't fret! **

**I've just been caught up with school and therapy and whatnot, so updates will be spontaneous. I can't give exact dates, but I will make them as quick as possible!**

**XOXO**

**ALSO: this chapter might be found to be disturbing to some viewers. It's low on the torture part, but has some pretty gruesome imagery. Other than that, Enjoy! And don't blame me for your nightmares ;)**

"Jack, would you quit your fidgeting? It is quite annoying."

Jack's face was contorted with anger. He was scared. He was worried. He was in pain. Tears slid from the corners of his eyes against his will. He did not want to cry; showing weakness was something he rarely did. But the past few days had been his weakest ever. Pitch truly, deeply terrified him.

Jack squirmed more in his restraints, the leather straps squeaking in protest. He couldn't let his friends come inside Pitch's lair!

How could he have been so stupid? Getting in fights was something he was used to, but he almost always won. Jack had gone into this fight as he would have any other- prideful and excited. He pelted Pitch with witty insults, used his mightiest attacks… but it was all in vain. He failed to realize what would happen if he lost the fight. He should have realized…

_This is all my fault! If it wasn't for me they wouldn't be here! I should have never gotten in that fight with Pitch. I was being selfish… I didn't think this would happen… and now my friends are in danger. _

Time seemed to slow to almost a stop as Jack's world came crashing down.

_This is all my fault…_

No matter how hard he tried, the tears wouldn't stop falling. He bit his lip, trying to gain control of his emotions.

_Okay Jack… you screwed up. But that's in the past. You've let Pitch torture and make fun of you for almost two days now, and you haven't done anything to stop him. C'mon… I can do this… I'm good at fighting back…_

Jack's breath finally began to slow, and he began to gain courage.

"Pitch, I swear. If you lay one finger on them, I will rip your throat out." Jack said in a low voice, sniffling a little. It was freezing in the room, and his throat hurt. He sounded rather cowardly, more like a young child back talking to their parents than the fierce teenager he was hoping to sound like.

Pitch walked around the stone table away from the mirror, his hands held firmly behind his back formally.

"Tsk… Well Jack, you seem to have woken up a bit hmm?" the man said, wolf grinning at the infuriated teen. Pitch loosened his hands from behind his back and brought one hand up to the boy's chin. His slender fingers wrapped around the boys thin face, and he yanked Jack's head at an angle so he could clearly see his face.

Jack was pissed.

Insanely, overly, tremendously upset.

His friends were in danger, and he couldn't do anything to help them; he was lying there getting mocked by the Boogeyman.

"Pitch I mean it! Just let them go, you can take me. Do whatever you want with me! Just… just don't hurt them!" Jack's voice cracked a little at the end, his sore throat making his words come out hoarse and rasping. Pitch smirked.

"It doesn't matter boy, they intruded on my property. Such behavior _must _be punished. As will your _lying_." Pitch smiled when he said these words, imagining all of the torture methods he had yet to use.

He wanted to relish in Jack's screams.

He wanted Jack to beg him for mercy.

And once he broke the boy, he would find Jamie, and start the cycle all over again. Jamie had the strongest spirit Pitch had ever sensed. He _believed_ in Jack, truly and deeply. If Pitch could make Jamie believe in him, he could get the child to get Jack on his side.

Pitch and Jack. Cold and darkness… nothing went better together.

Once they joined forces, Pitch could spread his darkness and make all the children fear him. He would thrive off the millions upon millions of children souls who quivered at his presence. He and Jack would be unstoppable.

Pitch was overly excited, and Jack sensed it. But when Pitch was excited, it wasn't for something happy and upbringing; it was usually something that would put someone in danger.

"What are you thinking about Pitch? Making another selfish plan, you bastard?" Jack scowled, and Pitch did not change. An evil smirk was still planted on his face.

"You know, when one smiles, it makes them feel better," Pitch put both his index fingers on either saide of Jack's mouth and attempted to make a fake smile on the boy's face. "You should try it some time."

Jack was enraged.

Pitch yelped and pulled his hand back quickly when the frostling took this as an advantage to fight back. Jack bit down hard on the man's fingers, causing him to release the sides of his mouth.

"You dirty little brat!" Pitch grasped his right hand, examining the bloody mess that was now his index finger. But he quickly disregarded his injured appendage and glanced over his shoulder at the mirror reflecting the other guardians.

Utter war had broken out between them and his nightmares. Pitch thought he had better get out there quickly; he couldn't risk the guardians get ahead of him and beat his arms.

"Well, my dear boy, I'm afraid I have a place to be," the man said, placing his bloody finger on the teen's forehead.

"Pitch! You dirty bastard… I swear-"

"Shhh," dark saind circled around Pitch's finger, and wrapped around Jack's head. "Sweet nightmares, my boy." Jack's head thumped against the hard stone as he was thrown into the insane realm of Pitch's nightmare kingdom- a place he had been many a time, and did not care to go back to.

Pitch departed the room with a snigger, shutting the door quietly as to not disturb the boy's nightmare.

XOXO

_It smelled rancid… like rotting flesh._

_Jack looked up, and saw the moon through the frozen snow he was trapped under. Jack took the coldness and the beautiful moon as a gracious gift; the bathed in the respite. _

_But slowly, painfully slowly… he felt it getting harder and harder to breathe. His body was getting pushed harder and harder into the ice above him. He wasn't frightened; the ice would break eventually, if enough pressure was pushed against it._

_But it never shattered. Jack kept getting pressed against it, and the ice didn't do as much as crack. He couldn't breathe. _

_He was suffocating._

_His lungs burned. _

_He fidgeted beneath the ice, and banged on the transparent material to try and break it. After a few hits, he heard something crack. He felt jolts of hope shoot from his toes to his ears. But as he looked up at the ice again, he realized that it was not he who had made the cracking noise._

_Someone was walking on the ice. _

_Jack could slightly make out certain blobs of color… brown… tan skin… a little dress…_

_Jack banged harder on the ice._

_Emma. _

_Jack couldn't hold his breath any longer; his vision was fading. As he tried to break his way out of the ice with what little strength he had left, he heard yet more footsteps. But these sounded heavier. It was a man, he could tell._

_He wanted to tell Emma to run. Mom had always told Jack not to let his little sister around strangers. Jack's lungs burned, but he persisted in knocking on the ice. _

_A tall black figure._

_Emma screamed._

_The ice above him was stained red._

_Jack screamed, but only managed to suck in ice cold water that filled his lungs, and his world went black._

_He awoke again in darkness, this time the smell of rotting flesh burning his nostrils._

_Jack stood up so quickly he almost fell backwards. "EMMA? EMMA?" He ran foreward several feet, only to be slammed in the face with something thick and slimy. _

_A dim light flickered on, and Jack almost lost his lunch. All around him there were chunks of meat and rotting skin hanging from hooks on the ceiling. _

_The one he had run into was extremely large, and all the skin had been skinned off… and it wasn't until he saw the curly white hair attached to the face he knew too well that he screamed. That was north's face. _

_That was North's body. _

_His eye sockets were open wide as dinner plates, only, the cheery, joyful irises that were normaly there were absent. All he could see were black holes._

_Jack turned around to run away, but found himself slapped in the face by another dangling piece of meat. This one hadn't been stripped of its skin… in fact, it didn't have skin._

_It had fur._

_Jack didn't want to see more. His legs gave out and he collapsed on the floor, shivering in the coldness of the room. He hugged his legs to his body, and closed his eyes._

_His friends were dead, Pitch had killed them. _

XOXO

Bunny smirked as his boomerang came back to him after taking out three nightmares.

"Great job, Mr. Kangaroo." Tooth smiled as she kicked two nightmares, turning them into dust. North held his own, as did sandy. They were all doing a great job. They had almost killed half of them.

But after a few seconds of rejoicing, the air seemed to go still, the air thin. The nightmares stopped what they were doing and turned towards Pitch's castle.

The Guardians planted their feet hard on the ground, ready to fight when needed. Pitch was not going to scare them away. They were going to get Jack back.

Evil cackling laughter filled the dark sky, and the nightmare skeletons laughed with it, the nightmare horsed rearing up and whinnying loudly.

Pitch slowly descended from the sky in front of the guardians. Before he had time to blink, Tooth struck out.

She flew straight at the dark man and threw a good solid punch to his stomach. He simply laughed.

"Where is Jack?" Tooth said angrily, only to be knocked down by Pitch's fist.

"Tooth! Pitch, You tell where Jack is, or else!" North growled.

Pitch sniggered. "Jack is… sleeping," pitch started laughing hysterically, holding his stomach.

"Pitch, you're a sick little twat. What've you done with the boy?" Bunny shouted over the low whispers of the nightmares. He put one paw forward, but no more. He didn't want to fight unless he had to.

Pitch said nothing, his laughter growing louder.

North charged at the man, giving him an uppercut to the jaw and knocking him out of his fit of laughter. Santa swung one of his swords at the nightmare king, but he parried with a shield of black sand.

"So we're going to do this the hard way I take it?" Pitch instantly let his shield down and moved too fast for north. A rope of black dust swindled around North's sword and yanked it away, putting it in Pitch's hands.

"You fight dirty…" North grunted. But he refused to be discouraged; he still had his brute strength.

Minutes upon minutes went by. Pitch would swing, North would swing back. Several times Santa blocked Pitch's attacks with his bare hands, which were now bruised and bloodied.

Pitch was almost unscathed.

North was shoved backwards onto his bum by a whack of black sand.

"Just give up. Leave. I don't have time to deal with this stupidity. I have… work to do," Pitch said, examining North and the other guardians. Bunny hopped to stand in front of Santa, and readied his boomerang.

Throughout all of the heated activity, Tooth had not gotten up off the ground. She simply watched in fear. But she noticed Sandy… he hadn't moved from his place since they had landed the sleigh. He was almost turning red with anger.

_Poor guy… he can't speak and he's got a mighty height disadvantage…_ Tooth thought, feeling sorry for the man of dreams.

The Sandman was a guardian, though, so despite height differences, he was as equal an opponent as North or Bunny. Sandy was furious; Jack had grown on him so much in the past year. He wanted him back, and out of harm's way.

Tooth quickly turned her head to look at Pitch, who was raising North's sword in the air to aim at Bunny. Pitch had turned his back to Tooth and Sandy, so they couldn't see much.

All that Sandy knew was that once Pitch swung that sword to hid Bunny, his boomerang wouldn't be the most efficient weapon to block with. Sandy needed a plan of action, and fast.

And as Pitch lowered the sword, the world seemed to stop.

Sandy focused all his energy and anger into his core, and shoved his hands forward, sending a golden spear of dreamsand racing towards Pitch. The tip of the spear ripped through Pitch's clothing and flesh, and a loud grunt came from his lips.

Every single horse and skeleton disappeared, and Pitch fell onto his knees, black liquid seeping from his abdomen.

"Y-You…. Couldn't have," Pitch stammered. Black began to pool around him, and his eyes grew heavy.

Bunny gave him a good kick under the jaw, and Pitch was knocked out cold. Helping North up, Bunny exclaimed, " Well, he should be out for a good while. He'll heal up quickly, but we should have time to save Jack."

"You're right," Tooth agreed, and Sandy nodded. Leaving Pitch lying in the snow, they walked until the ugly, dark castle loomed over them.

And it wasn't until then that they heard the bloodcurdling screams coming from within its walls.

**Please feel free to politely critique grammar flaws, and give suggestions! Reviews make me smile, and I will try to reply to all this time!**


	7. Chapter 7

When Nightmares are Present

By: Wolflover77

Enjoy!

**Pardon any mistakes. Anxiety and counseling have taken up most of my time, but I knew I needed to fit in some time for my dear readers. Enjoy, and hopefully you won't have to wait so long for the next chapter~**

By the time Jack had opened his eyes, the nightmares had done their job. Jack was terrified. Absolutely and completely petrified.

"They- they were dead. A-a-and their skin…" jack mumbled as images popped into Jack's mind. he screamed, fidgeting in the leather straps, rubbing his wrists raw and straining his already shattered collarbone.

_I did all of this. I caused all of this…_

He picked his head up gently, hissing. He squinted his eyes as his world went from blurry to somewhat clear. Jack craned his neck to see the mirror that had once before displayed his friends, beginning to gasp and choke when he did not see them reflected on the mirror's surface.

_Stop Jack. Stop._

Jack blinked; he didn't know where the voice had come from.

_Clear your mind. Push away the pain, push away the guilt. Clear your thoughts; focus. Gain control._

Jack rested his head back on the stone table and took a deep breath. Whether he was hearing voices inside his head, or the voice of Death was calling for him, he had to admit the voice had a point. He had no control over himself. He was going insane.

_I need to focus… breathe man… breathe._ He repeated to himself, taking in deep breaths, and slowly letting them out.

He lie staring at the ceiling for several minutes, until he realized his eyelids drooping. He felt unusually sleepy and drained of energy. He'd felt this way several times throughout Pitch's torture sessions- queasy, lightheaded…

Jack groaned as his mind ran in circles.

Jack had never been this seriously injured before, and had never seen his own blood. Therefore, he couldn't tell the thick wet substance running down his abdomen was in fact, his blood.

He

Jack broke into a cold sweat, frantically swishing his head back and forth to make his head stop spinning. He couldn't see it- he couldn't lift his head high enough, do to his numerous upper- body injuries- but the gash Pitch had given him during their fight was seeping blood. The metallic smelling liquid covered his stomach, and soaked his jeans. The gash, about two inches deep, stretched from his left hip to his right shoulder. The more he struggled, the more the red liquid flowed.

The thick, iron smelling liquid dripped from his stomach and pooled under him on the stone table. He started gasping; air was getting harder to take in. He wriggled in his restraints more, twitching as the blood slowly drained out of him. He coughed, rattling his broken ribs and shattered hip throb. He finally closed his eyes and turned his head to the side, ready to let unconsciousness overtake him. The taste of blood in his mouth was disgusting.

His breathing slowed, and he began to drift away. Ice blue eyes stared at the wall through half closed lids; cold, sharp breaths coming from a bruised and raw throat.

In the corner of the room, a pile of dark nightmare sand had accumulated, and began slithering closer to the table. As it moved silently across the floor, Jack's ears perked. Something else was in the room. He felt another… presence.

The nightmare sand slowly moved up the stone in tendrils and reached the boy's legs. Jack felt something unusual, but concluded it was his mind playing tricks on him. The sand continued to slither up Jack's legs and up to his stomach, stopping at the wound.

A creature, unrecognizable by its absence of skin, prowled out of the dark shadows and walked towards the stone table.

Jack's eyes opened a little more. The pain was… it was going away?

He slowly felt something taking the pain away, it felt cold and grainy. Jack unclenched his teeth, graciously accepting the feeling. The figure smirked; screams were what he wanted. Tortured screams.

Just as fast as the respite had begun, it felt as if a dagger had been plunged into Jack's already bleeding wound. It burned. It stung.

The figure had made the sand into a sharp knife, and had imbedded it inside of Jack.

He could do nothing to stop the scream that erupted from his throat, all of his senses awake again. More blood seeped out of the wound now, and Jack was in immense pain, as the figure kept twisting the knife inside his abdomen. Jack slammed his head back on the stone, crying out as the knife dug down into his stomach.

As the sand reached even further, Jack screamed the most terrifying screech. After seveal seconds of tears and thrashing, the knife stopped, and pulled itself out of the boy, clanking onto the floor below.

When Jack opened his eyes… he stopped screaming. He absolutely froze. Bunnymund was standing in front of him, no fur or skin on his body. He was dripping blood; wheter it his or Jack's he wasn't sure, and his eyes… oh his eyes. They were black holes. Holes that delightfully complimented the maniacle grin planted on his face. Jack was shivering out of control, his brain was running rampid trying to find explanations for the situation at hand.

Jack thought Pitch's nightmare had ended, but in all honesty, it had just begun.

"How many goddamn stairs are there in this place?" Bunny panted as he leaped up several more steps.

Tooth giggled and continued moving forward; she did have wings after all.

"What was that Tooth?" Bunny growled, grabbing the fairy's feathers and yanking her down. Tooth fell to the floor with a thud and looked up at Bunny, terrified in a sort of confused way.

"Don't-" North grabbed Bunny's raised paw and looked right into his eyes. Bunny's chest was heaving and his face was contorted in anger.

"Bunny! You listen. _Now._ This situation with Jack, it has gotten all of us in big fuss. But we are guardians! We cannot let emotions get better of us. You must keep temper in check." North glared at Bunny, and helped tooth up. She gave bunny a forgiving smile as she brushed herself off and followed North up the stairs again.

Their footsteps echoed eerily throughout the dark hallways of the dark fortress, clomping loudly on the stone steps. Bunny's sensitive nose couldn't help but smell the disgusting odor of blood, vomit, and urine.

_God knows how many people he's held prisoner here…_ Bunny thought with a shiver.

As if on cue, the terrible, bloodcurdling scream they had heard from outside the castle reverberated off the castle walls, louder this time.

"that's definitely Jack…" Took almost whispered. "He sounds…" she gulped as she pictured his mangled body in her mind.

"No time to stop… c'mon! We're close, mates. Let's go grab the fella' and bust outta here," Bunny said, continuing up the stairs.

North did not say anything, and kept walking. They walked until the stairs ended, and they were left facing a long, dark passageway.

All was silent for a moment.

"Jack? Jack can you hear me?" Bunny shouted, lowering his ears in case there was another scream. No scream erupted, but slight whimpers could be heard coming from the door at the end of the hallway.

"He's in there!" Bunny and North bolted to the door, but almost tripped over themselves when they heard Jack's cries.

"Bunny! W-what are you doing- agh! S-stop… it hurt's…" Jacks voice was rough and hoarse. North looked at Bunny suspiciously, and the Easter spirit put both his front paws up in defense. More whimpers came.

Finally, Tooth could not bear it anymore. She shoved past her friends and shoved the door with all her might.

Within the first five seconds of opening the door, she dropped to her knees and screamed herself.

**Reviews would be appreciated. I know I have a LOOONG way to go in order to improve my writing, so feedback is helpful- both good and negative. Reviews make me smile as well~**

**Wolfie~**


	8. Chapter 8

_When Nightmares are Present_

_By: Wolflover77_

_Enjoy!_

_**Well, here it is! I hope you enjoy. I honestly have no idea where this story is going, so I am completely open to suggestions! Written at 2:00 a.m….. pardon the horridness. Enjoy, my little monsters 3**_

Jamie sat on the hotel bed with his chin resting on his hands. Rome was totally not what he had expected.

_Maybe if Jack were here…_

Jamie's parents stood outside the hotel window arguing with each other. He could see their silhouettes through the curtains as the yelled nasty insults at each other.

Sophie sat next to him, quietly looking up to her older brother for protection. Several sheets of scribbled-on paper lie on the floor, each with various different colors and shaped that Jamie could not make out. Although most of the shaped were abstract and hard to make out, one of them caught his eye.

"Soph, what's this one of?" Jamie asked, picking up a sheet of paper with four figures scribbled in Crayola marker. Jamie couldn't help but smile when he realized who the four were.

"It's Santa!" She pointed to the stereotypical jolly, plump Santa she had drawn.

"And look! It's the Easter Bunny!" Jamie said with mock excitement. He had to keep Sophie happy… she was so little and fragile. Their parents would stop fighting eventually. Until then, Jamie had to take the role as big brother and keep her occupied.

"Yeah, Yeah! And look! Its Tooth Fairy and the sand guy!" she said, practically bouncing up and down on the bed. Jamie complimented her artistic abilities and gave her a high five.

Moments of silence went by, the only thing occupying Jamie's mind being his parent's screaming and the picture that lie in front of him.

"Hey sis," he asked.

"Yeah?" she replied, her eyed sparkling.

"Where's Jack in the picture?"

**xxxxxxxx**

Tooth could not move. She did not want to move. Her whole body was frozen in disgust and fear.

North walked in a few seconds after Tooth's screech, and put his hand to his forehead in disbelief.

Bunny was the last to enter, walking through the doorway with lowered ears and tense muscles. He was the first to utter a response.

"Bloody hell… dear god, what did Pitch…"

"How did we let get this far?" Santa just about whispered. Both of the men in the room were so shocked and disgusted that they didn't notice Tooth get up and walk over to the stone table where Jack lay restrained.

She hovered a few inches off the ground; she was too short to see Jack clearly over the tall stone table. The damage was certainly worse close up. From what she could see from his exterior, he needed medical attention.

He was bare chested, and his stomach was so badly bruised he almost looked purpleish gray. She could see where one of his ribs had been completely cracked. The bone made the skin over his ribcage look odd and lumpy. Vomit almost escaped her throat as she noticed the deep gash running from his hip to his shoulder. Blood was crusted around the wound, and fresh blood pooled under him. Several slash wounds around his waist looked red and green with infection; whatever had been used to inflict the wounds was certainly not sanitized. As she looked farther down his torso, she noticed his jeans pulled down slightly, revealing his boxers.

_Pitch… you dirty, sick bastard.. _ Tooth gagged and turned away, lightly sobbing. This was too much for her.

Bunny hopped over and put a paw on Tooth's shoulder.

"We should unstrap him and get him out of here, mates. Then we can take care of his injuries." He said, glancing at North, who was picking up Jack's shredded embroidered snowflake hoodie that had carelessly been tossed in a corner. The anger in his face was more than prominent.

As Tooth stepped back, her foot knocked something cold backwards. The subtle _clink clink_ of the metal was all she needed to hear to know that it was a knife. Bunnymund's nose twitched, and he turned around to pick the object up. It was a rusty knife, dripping with deep red blood. As soon as the rabbit's paws touched the handle of the blade, Tooth squealed with a mix of excitement and dread.

"He's awake! He just opened his eyes!'

Bunny dropped the knife, letting it clank to the ground once again. But instead of turning around to face a happy Jack, the one he had known before, he turned to face a petrified Jack. And his eyes were staring straight into Bunny's.

"whaaa…" Jack moaned, not taking his eyes off of Bunny.

"Aye! Look who's up," Bunny said, walking towards the shivering child. Jack's muscles tensed almost instantly.

Bunny reached his right paw to unbuckle the leather strap restraining Jack's wrist, but Jack yanked in his bonds, screeching for his life.

"Stay away from me!" Jack cried out, thrashing around even more. Bunny immediately jerked his hand away, frightened. He and the winter spirit were close to each other…

_Why is he scared of me?_

"Jack… buddy it's me, Bunny. And Tooth and Santa are here too. We're here to get you out of here. Let me just unbuckle these-"

"I said don't touch me you sick bastard!" Jack cried out, tears now streaming down his face. "You stabbed me…"

"What the hell?" the rabbit muttered under his breath. " Jack! We've been fighting Pitch's demons… I was no where near you. We didn't even know if you were alive…" he continued, moving closer. He was determined to show the teenager that he meant no harm.

"It was you. I saw you. You stabbed me." Jack's voice was almost a whisper. His thrashing and screaming had taken his last bit of energy. He refused to look at Bunny.

"Jack, you can ask Tooth. I wasn't in here. I swear." Bunny said, nervousness coating his words. Tooth walked up to Jack, and placed a hand on his cheek.

"Sweetie…you're hallucinating. It was Pitch that did these things to you." Tooth said softly. Jack wrenched his head away in terror.

All Jack saw was a furry body with hollow eyes.

_This isn't Bunny! It's his corpse… he's dead._

"Jack, you have to trust us-"

Tooth was cut off by another bloodcurdling howl from the teen. Bunnymund quickly undid the leather straps despite the boy's cries, and tried to calm him down.

"Jack where does it hurt?" Bunny asked, reluctantly placing a paw on the boy's forehead. The only response he got from Jack was a squeal of pain and a terrified glare.

Jack curled up into a ball, his least injured arm covering his abdomen. More specifically, the wound which "Bunny" had inflicted upon him.

"Jack let me see it mate," Bunny said, prying the boy's arms off his stomach.

"Be careful! You can't just-" Tooth was cut off by a flustered Sandy waving his hands frantically for both of them to stop. The little man had been so quiet (not that he could have been very loud). The rest of the Guardians had almost forgotten about him. Sandman gestured for Bunny to lift him up next to Jack on the stone table.

Golden dust danced around Jack's head, not quite putting him to sleep, but calming his nerves. Jack lay completely still. Sandy went right to work, as if he knew exactly why the teen was acting so peculiar. When he pried the boy's arm away from his abdomen, he nodded as if what he saw was what he expected.

"What is it? What's wrong?" Tooth quietly asked, nervous.

A golden image of Pitch appeared above his head. Tooth snorted.

"We already know this is pitch's fault." Bunny said. North still stood in the corner, not saying a word.

Sandy shook his head and pointed to some of the black dreamsand surrounding Jack on the table. Then he pointed to the wound.

Bunny's eyebrows raised in confusion.

Sandy looked at the wound once more, noticing the black grains of sand intertwined with Jack's red blood. The man of dreams had come to his conclusion- he'd seen this sort of thing happen before. Pitch had made Jack hallucinate with his dreamsand, causing Jack to see "Bunny" stab him, when Pitch had clearly been the culprit. When Pitch had been torturing the boy, he had put his nightmare sand on the blade, and now it was inside Jack, making the nightmare sand's effects amplify.

Sandy stuck his hands out and let golden tendrils of sand entangle themselves in Jack's mangled skin, destroying the black sand. Once the sand was out of the wound and the extra nightmare sand was wiped off the table, Jack gasped for air.

Bunny, Tooth and North had no time to ask what Sandman had done, because immediately after opening his eyes, Jack mumbled with confused joy.

"G-g-guys? What…Pitch… and… thought you were dead…." Jack's chest moved rapidly up and down, his breath coming out in quick, ragged gasps. His voice was barely a whisper.

"C'mon mate. We're gonna get you all fixed up." Bunny said, smiling tremendously. _Thank god he was only hallucinating…_

Jack graciously accepted Tooth's warm hands on his freezing body. Her hands gently touched the skin over his shattered collarbone, as not to disturb it.

"Collarbone's broken…"

"That's three broken ribs, cracked hip, and snapped wrist. Not counting the numerous stab wounds and bruises…" Bunny said quietly to Tooth as she looked down at the half-concious Jack still lying on the goddamn stone table. The Guardians had wanted to assess his injuries before moving him, so they wouldn't hurt him further.

"I Know… But we take care of It when we get back to North Pole." Santa said, ready to get out of the dark walls of Pitch's lair.

After several minutes, they decided they were ready to grab Jack and leave. Bunny slowly slipped his paws under the boy's back, eliciting a small cry to escape his lips.

"Sorry mate… We'll be home in no time bud… it's gonna be alright." Bunny said reassuringly.

They were halfway down the winding stairs when Jack, of all people broke the silence.

"Bunny,"

"Yeah?"

"I'm really glad your eyes are back."

Bunny half smiled, half wondered what the hell the boy was talking about. He figured he'd ask when this whole thing was a thing of the past. When Jack was safe and healthy, and they could sit sipping hot chocolate and laugh about Pitch, like they always did.

**Meh. I'm not feeling well, but I needed to update. Anxiety and school are my enemies at the moment… I've also completely cleaned out my Deviant art of the horrid things from when I was a child… *shudders*. Hopefully I can start over there, too. I think my writing is getting better… but I will never know if you guys don't tell me!**

**Is it creative enough?**

**Do I stay in the same tense the whole time? (past, present, future…)**

**Is my vocabulary second-grader-ish?**

**Do I portray the characters in a similar manner as they were portrayed in the film? (except Jack… he's kind of been tortured. He's a little out of character (: ) **


	9. Chapter 9

_When Nightmares are Present_

_By: Wolflover77_

_Enjoy_

_**My precious readers, I am sorry this took a while. Bleh… I've been having life-crisis overload recently- too many things to explain on this story. So please, bear with the spontaneous updates, and tone of this story. It might get lighter or darker depending on what I'm feeling. This chapter is pretty long, so grab some pocky and green tea, and get settled! **_

_**I would also like some feedback ^_^ I'm glad to know people are enjoying this, and I would love to know what you would like to see in future chapters. You guys keep me writing, and trust me, that's a good thing. Writing takes away the pain of reality for me. It's helped me through a lot, actually. And when I see my writing making other people happy, gosh darn does It make Wolfie feel great!**_

_**I'm still battling bulimia and anxiety, but I'd do anything for you guys. I love you, so keep being you. Don't let anyone else change that, because I, Wolfie, love you to death. *internet huggles***_

_**Now read on, faithful readers! Language warning. I has a potty mouth. **_

Pitch ran his slender fingers along the rough stone table, smearing the frostling's blood on the surface. The boy had escaped. More specifically, _the Guardians had saved him. They had infiltrated his domain. _

"The most certainly will pay for this," the demonic man said, bringing his fingers up to his lips. He ran his tongue along the tips of his fingers, relishing in the taste of Jack Frost's blood. "Mmmmm, truly delicious…"Pitch said, licking his lips. "I must have _more_." He continued, beginning to laugh hysterically. His plan to use the boy's nightmares for his plan had awoken something in the man. _Bloodlust. _ He almost didn't care if his plan got fulfilled. He just wanted to hear the boy scream, see him writhe under his arms!

He fingered the leather straps sadly, as if he missed the skinny, delicate arms that had been restrained in them only hours ago. He needed the screams, the fear, the _blood._ He needed Jack to fear him, to be broken. He needed Jack to be _his, _to listen to him so he could fulfill his plan.

_Clink clink_

Pitch looked down to notice the rusty dagger he had used several times to torment the boy clatter to the corner of the room. As he picked it up, the urge to make the boy scream and writhe underneath him grew immense; it was almost painful. Anger and bloodlust welled up in the pit of his stomach, causing the Nightmare King to momentarily lose control.

"They have him… I can't let them have him. I _need _him. Those fucking idiots! They will pay, all of them!" Pitch slammed his fist against the stone wall, his sharp nails digging into his palms. Blood dripped down his wrist, his yellow eyes wide and darting around the room. The hand holding the dagger opened, and the object clanked to the ground. All was silent for several moments except for Pitch's heavy breathing.

"I cannot let those buffoons spoil my plan," Pitch muttered, dropping his hands to his sides. "I will show them my true power… they will never take advantage of me again." He smirked a smile that almost seemed too big for his face.

"Let's get this fucking party started." His smile only widened as he walked, not paying attention to the puddles of blood he stepped in on his way to the door, the thick red substance sloshing under his footsteps.

He turned a corner leading down a long, narrow hallway. At the end was a faint blue glow, almost as if a train were at the end of the hallway. But what was truly at the end of the hallway was something much stronger, much more powerful than any train. Pitch walked up to the object emitting the blue aura and slowly wrapped his clawed fingers around it.

He felt completely and utterly powerful; for in his hand was the weapon he would use to finally break the winter spirit.

In his hand was Jack Frost's one and only staff; his key to controlling the weather, his source of strength and power was in the palms of Pitch Black.

**xxxxxx**

"So, you're not dead?" Jack asked for the tenth time in a rasping voice, trying to regain his sense of reality. Twenty minutes had passed since his rescue from Pitch's tower, and thirty minutes since he awoke convinced his friends had been killed. He had not been given much time to differ nightmare from reality; his mind was overheated and his thoughts were running rampant. Fear and adrenaline were his only sources of fuel.

"No mate, we told ya', t'was all a big ole nightmare. From that bastard, Pitc-"

"Shhhht!" Tooth hissed, her pointed finger over her lips. Her eyes seemed to scream at Bunny to shut up.

_Don't say Pitch's name in front of him, you idiot! _

The last thing they needed to do was send Jack into a panic induced heart attack. He seemed okay now; actually, he seemed almost better than they had thought he'd be. He was talking in coherent sentences, and didn't seem to be in too much pain despite his obvious injuries.

"Oh," Jack said, as if hearing Bunny's reply for the first time. "So it was just a nightmare? You never lost your eyes?" he looked at Bunny, who shook his head. "and you never got skinned alive?" he looked at Tooth and North, who also shook their heads. "good," Jack huffed out, giggling to himself.

The winter spirit winced at the sudden jerk his laughter caused to his stab wound. It reopened slightly, sending ruby rivulets down Jack's side. "Gahh," Jack moaned in annoyance, moving his arm to cover the wound. Immediately he yelped, his broken collarbone shouting its protest.

Sandy walked over to the boy with a sullen face, dreamsand in hand. He looked into the boy's eyes before sprinkling him with golden dust with a sorrowful glare; he wished he could help relieve the boy's misery forever.

_After this… Jack might not ever be the same again. _The Sandman thought sadly as he grabbed the boy's hand, allowing golden tendrils of sand to twist and turn up Jack's arm, to his neck, and eventually to his face. Jack's eyes fluttered shut as he drifted into the land of dreams, yawning slightly. Sandy did not take his eyes off the boy, and placed a hand on the boy's bleeding side. Golden dust surrounded the wound and covered it, acting as a bandage to stop the bleeding. It wouldn't heal the wound, but it would stop it from getting any worse for the time being.

Silence. No one talked. No one moved (as they were already squished on top of each other in the sleigh, trying to provide the most room possible for the frostling.) Though no one spoke, there were thoughts inside each guardian's head. The four of them had yet to figure out Pitch's motive behind his capture and torture of Jack… he certainly wouldn't have just done all of this for fun… right?

North pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. He sat with his elbows on his knees and an angry scowl on his face. He looked anything but "Jolly Ole' Saint Nick" with his numerous scrapes and bruises from the night's battle, in fact he looked somewhat intimidating. This in mind, when he stood up to walk over to Sandy, who was still holding Jack's hand, the dream man looked frightened. _Had he done something wrong? Should he not have put Jack to sleep?_

"Sandy," North said, placing a meaty hand on the smaller male's shoulder. "you have done great job. Thank you for putting Jack to sleep, he needs rest. But I take it from here,"

Sandy, along with Bunny and Tooth, had not realized the sleighs sudden stop in motion. They had arrived at the North Pole.

Sandy regretfully let go of the Boy's hand and side, the golden dust crumbling away and leaving the wound on Jack's side open and oozing blood. Jacks eyes fluttered open, as if he too had noticed the lack of movement.

"Bunny, go alert the Yetis of our arrival. We need the infirmary," Tooth said, rushing to North's side to help carry Jack into the building.

"Jack, we are going to move you now, do not be scared," North said, slipping both his hands under the boy's back. Jack did not respond; he just stared at North with a blank expression.

"Jack, can you hear me?" Tooth waved a hand in front of his face, trying to get him to snap out of his trance. Jack suddenly jerked, his pupils becoming nothing more than small black dots. "Jack…?"

Jack coughed, turning his head to vomit. His mood from earlier had vanished; his injuries seemed to be taking their effect on hid body.

"We were so happy we rescued him… that we forgot how bad his injuries were, and how bad he needs medical attention," Tooth said worriedly. As if on cue, Jack coughed again, this time spitting up something more grotesque than vomit. Crimson blood spurted in ruby droplets on Tooth's bright feathers, causing her to gasp in surprise and disgust. "Jack are you okay?"

_Goddammit Tooth, does he look okay!? _She thought to herself immediately after she spoke. It was only then that she realized the horrified look on North's face. His eyes were glued to her bloodstained feathers, his pupils almost as dilated as Jack's. "What is it…?" she asked, watching the man stick his arm out to swipe his fingers across the bloodstained feathers.

Bunny hopped over, completely oblivious. "Aye, mates. He said the infirmary's…" Bunny stopped mid-sentence and looked quickly from Tooth to North. "Everything alright?"

Tooth stared at the blood on North's outstretched fingers, her mouth forming a perfect "O", ignoring Bunny completely.

"Does this look alright?" North said under his breath. He glanced back at Jack, who was panting, his eyes darting from guardian to guardian. Bunny was still clueless.

North shoved his bloodied hand in Bunnymund's face so he could witness what he and Tooth had just seen. Bunny gasped.

On North's fingers was obviously blood, but something else was present as well. In Jack's crimson blood was a black substance that none of the guardians had ever seen before. All four of them stood in utter silence, trying to think of some scientific explanation. The only word that came to each of their minds, was _Pitch. _

Jack coughed again, earning worried glared from the guardians.

"He needs to be in the infirmary, now," Bunny said, not taking his eyes off Jack.

The boy coughed once more, droplets of black and red spurting from his lips. Upon Jack's face was a devious grin, revealing his pearly whites, which were stained with black and red. He looked with crazy eyes upon his friends, smirking for some unknown reason. After several seconds his eyes fluttered shut and his head hit the floor, the creepy smile erased from his face. He was out cold again.

Tooth slowly put a hand over her mouth, chocking out a sob.

"Get a stretcher. Now." North demanded, looking at Jack's unconscious body. The boy was shivering, and gasping for breath, even in his unconscious state. North was no longer putting up with Pitch's shit… things had gone too far; he could deal with Pitch's arrogant mouth and challenging fights, but now Pitch had crossed the line, and he would certainly have to pay.

**Xxxx**

Two hours had passed, and Yetis were still rummaging around the infirmary. Blood stained all of their hands, and sad eyes were filled with tears upon their faces. Poor little Jack's eyes were squinted , his fists balled in pain.

North stood panting, looking out the window into the dawn. Beads of glistening sweat adorned his forehead, along with dark circles under his once joyful eyes. One of his palms rested on his forehead, the other shoved in his pants pocket. He huffed, letting out a breath he had not known he'd been holding in.

"We should have gotten him here sooner…" North muttered, turning his head to look at the bloodied Jack lying in a hospital bed. The once crisp white sheets on which he laid were stained an ugly red. His side was wrapped in gauze, little spots of red peeking through the white cotton in some areas. Tubes stuck out of his arms and wires running to all different kinds of machines were hooked to his body. Swelling purple bruises sneaked out from under the bandages on his collarbone and ribcage, contrasting against his pale skin. Tubes ran from his nose, giving him oxygen which he desperately needed; he was gasping for breath that wouldn't seem to fill his lungs.

Bunny stood among the jungle of tangled wires and odd machines, occasionally glancing up from his clipboard that had been given to him by one of me medical team members. They had assigned him to check Jack's vitals every twenty minutes to keep them updated, and the Easter spirit did it happily.

The medical team consisted of Yetis and humans alike, hustling to grab antibiotics and bandages. Worried muttering could be heard amongst the clicking of shoes on the linoleum floor and shuffling of papers. One of the doctors held up a vial filled to the rim with a blue-tinted liquid to the light, eyeing it closely. He turned it in the light, examining every aspect of it. These doctors were specially trained to deal with the health of the Guardians; North chose them out individually to work in the Pole's infirmary. They always managed to get the job done, and North had no doubt they would get Jack fixed up.

The liquid contained in the tube was a modified antibiotic- one that would heal when all else failed. They were not to use the medicine unless they had tried all other methods of healing; this was a last resort. Not much of it was in existence, and it had dangerous side effects. Curable, but dangerous side effects. The scientist sat the tube down on the counter, and continued his work looking at blood samples from the boy.

_Slosh. _

The sudden sound of something splashing on the tiled floor, along with Tooth's yelp of horror sent a hoard of doctors to Jack's side. The boy was bent over the side of his bed, hacking up blood onto the white floor. His eyes were wide with fear and pain, and his hands gripped the sheets for dear life.

North flagged Sandy to come help calm the boy as the doctors fought to get him into a sitting position so he wouldn't choke to death on his own blood. Jack began thrashing around, blood still dripping from his lips.

Sands grabbed Jack's hand and sprinkled dreamsand over his head, but his efforts were in vain.

_Why won't it work? Pitch must be getting stronger…_

Sandy's face was contorted in fear at the realization that Pitch's nightmares might be getting stronger than his dreams. He could not let Pitch Black win.

Jack slowly stopped his thrashing, wide eyes staring at the ceiling. He was practically hyperventilating, and the red stain on his side was growing, along with the Guardian's fear that they were going to lose Jack.

_Pitch you damn bastard. None of this would be happening if it weren't for you…_

Suddenly Jack stopped his panting. Seconds later the machine that was hooked to Jack's chest to monitor his heart rate went berserk, lines bleeping all over the screen, and beeping noises filling the ears of the people in the room. Jack was shaking involuntarily, and Tooth just about lost it.

"He's having a heart attack!" She yelled, grasping one of the doctor's arms. She let her emotions get the better of her once again, letting tears slip down her face.

Doctors were shuffling around, some trying to find an AED* and others pressing buttons on random machines to try and find some sort of solution. Five deadly minutes passed with the rapid beeping ringing in the doctor's ears. A minute later, a flat tone replaced the beeping.

Tooth screamed.

"He's gone into cardiac arrest! If we don't revive him, he will die in minutes. Something has stopped his heart from beating!" One of the doctors yelled, running over to jack's side. After failed attempts at shocking the boy's heart back to life, North shoved the doctors aside, and began to press his meaty hands down on the boy's chest. He could not lose Jack.

_One, two, three… one, two, three… c'mon Jack…_

A lone tear formed in North's eye, and he let it slip down his cheek. Nothing mattered at the moment except for keeping Jack alive. North kept pumping relentlessly, refusing to let the boy die. Jack's eyes continued to stare blankly at the ceiling.

"North…" Tooth whispered through a sob, placing one of her tiny feathered hands on one of North's big ones. North was panting from trying to get Jack's heart to beat again, a look of pure frustration plastered on his face; he was ashamed. "here." Tooth said, extending her other hand towards him. She opened her fingers to reveal a syringe filled with blue liquid. North knew what it was the second he saw it, his eyes lighting up like a Christmas tree.

"What a bloody mess we have here, hmmm?"

Everyone stopped breathing. The clock stopped ticking. It couldn't be…

Everyone in the room turned to see a figure walk from the shadows. Pitch stood, a large grin plastered on his face. In his hand was Jack's staff.

"Put it down, you asshole!" Bunymund automatically went into attack mode upon seeing Pitch, which might not have been the best idea on his part. Bunny ran at full speed towards the man, only to get a gut punch to the stomach, sending him flying into the back wall where he sat, dazed and unmoving.

"No can do, kangaroo," Pitch said, twirling Jack's staff in his hands. "You see, something of mine has been taken," He eyed Jack hungrily. North and Tooth moved defensively in front of his bed, blocking him from Pitch's view. "And if I'm not mistaken, that something happens to be in cardiac arrest at the moment. Tsk Tsk Guardians…I thought you could fix anything…" Pitch eyed Jack's staff in his hands, funning his hands down its wooden surface.

_SNAP._

Bunny's ears perked up at the sudden noise, and North shouted in protest. Pitch stood in front of the shadows holding Jack's staff that was now in two pieces. Jack's body jerked in the bed, but he still showed no signs of breathing. The heart monitor was still a flat line.

"Oh, my poor little Jack!" Pitch threw the pieces of staff onto the ground, stepping on them as he made his way over to Jack's bed. With a wave of his hand, Tooth, North and Sandy were restrained with nightmare ropes of sand against the wall; Pitch made sure they were at a decent angle to witness his next show- he wanted to make sure they could see it.

"You stop right now, Pitch." Bunny said through clenched teeth. Pitch walked over to Bunny and looked down at him.

"I would shut your goddamned mouth if I were you, vermin. Jack will die in a matter of minutes if he does not receive this antidote," Pitch hissed, ripping the syringe out of Tooth's hand. "and seeing as none of you are in the position to give it to him, I guess I'll have to do the honors. I know he can't wait to see my face again," Pitch said, throwing his head back in laughter.

The man walked over to the side of Jack's bed, placing his slender fingers under the boy's chin. "Aww, sweetheart, you look terrible," he said, fingering the syringe in his other hand. He ran his hand from Jack's chin down the boy's chest , admiring the damage he had done, and that the guardians had yet to fix. Realizing that the boy was probably seconds from death by now, he raised his hand up, syringe in his grasp, and jammed it into Jack's chest. When he pushed the plunger down, Jack jerked up and sucked in a large gasp of air. The first thing his eyes fell upon was Pitch's face.

Jack tried to sit up, but Pitch shoved him back onto the pillows of his bed. Grasping the tubes that connected to Jack's body, giving him vital nutrients and fluid, he ripped them out, along with the wires connected to the boy's chest. Jack screeched, both in pain and in fear.

_I…I-I thought Pitch was gone… they saved me…_

Pitch grasped the bandages around the boy's stomach, and rips those off as well. The newly forming skin and dried blood that was stuck to the bandages cause Jack immense pain when the man ripped the gauze off, eliciting yet another scream from Jack's lips.

"You need to learn your manners, brat. Screaming is impolite." Pitch said, shoving Jack off the bed and onto the floor. Tooth gasped and closed her eyes. Jack's injuries were severe… he was in a fragile state at the moment; his health couldn't afford the shoving and pushing that Pitch was administering to it.

Jack tried to get up, but only managed to rise onto his elbows. Pitch slammed a foot into his ribcage, sending him smashing into the nearest wall. Pitch walked over to him and grabbed the boy by the arm. A black gag of nightmare sand was placed around his mouth. "That should help." Pitch walked to the exit carrying a kicking and screaming Jack.

"As for you four," Pitch turned to the other guardians. "You better have learned from your mistake."

_**Sorry if that was gory, or too dark. I think that's where this story is headed. Ideas for future chapters are welcomed!**_

_**And I hate to be one of those authors that asks for reviews… but I would like to hear more feedback! You guys make me smile, and the more reviews I get, who knows! Wolfie might just update faster! ^_^**_

_**Wolfie~**_


	10. Chapter 10

_When Nightmares are Present_

_By: Wolflover77_

_Enjoy~_

_**Hello my little tacos! This is extremely late, and rather short and poorly written… (I'll probably go back and fix it) but I figured you guys would like to know I'm still alive xD Personal issues and school have taken quite a toll on momma Wolfie, so please be patient my dears. I love you all, and I hope you enjoy. **_

_**This is simply a filler. You can skip it if you'd like. Everything will be recapped in the next chapter. **_

_**And once again, G. This fic contains BLOOD/GORE/TORTURE. Please do not read this story and then comment that it's too violent. That's how I intended it to be. I don't want to upset any of you, so please. Note that this isn't some rainbow-bunny-unicorn-my little pony-fairy story. It's horror. And angst. And just twisted things. **_

_**Please, enjoy!**_

_**A note to my reviewers:**_

_**1captain obvious- THAT IS EXACTLY HOW I FEEL. I guess I was just born with it, but I just love seeing cute, innocent boys get hurt and then fixed up. It's weird o.o thanks for the review~**_

_**Starskulls- OH MY DEAR CHILD WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN MY WHOLE LIFE? Most people think I'm creepy for being a bloodthirsty author, butI have found another of my kind! Thank you so very much for the support and review. You're awesome~**_

_**Writeous- you made me cry with that one, I must say. Thank you so much. It means a lot to know that people enjoy this story c": And you are completely correct. After all, Pitch is all about **__fear__**. And fear doesn't just come in the form of nightmares; it can come in much worse forms of evil. Thank you very much for the review~**_

_**PippaFrost, blakkyu, XxTheMoonRiddlexX, Rosepink4140, thisisentertaining, sarafine-ecleip- thank all of you for the reviews! I appreciate them so much!**_

"_Your disobedience will be reprimanded." _

Silk sheets flew off his body as he bolted upright in terror, frantically glancing around the small, dark-lit room.

"Who's t-there?" Jack stuttered, his neck twisting to scan the room for any visitors. To his relief he got no reply and found no person in the room. Letting out a large breath he pulled the sheets back around his shoulders, still in a sitting position.

_I've never been in this part of the North Pole before…I wonder if it's new? North must've just built it._

In front of him was a large wooden door. It was shut all the way, allowing no light from the hallway to make its way into the room. The only source of illumination came from a small red lamp sitting on a wooden nightstand on the right side of the bed. Jack shivered despite his already cold interior, and wrapped the blankets tighter around him. He wanted to feel Bunny's soft fur, Tooth's ticklish feathers, North's scruffy beard… oh how he missed his friends.

He glanced again at the small nightstand, noticing a tall glass of ice water sitting nicely on an intricately designed coaster. Droplets of condensation covered the outside of the cup; it had been sitting there for a while. He winced as he reached for the water, his aching muscles shouting in protest.

He closed his eyes as he brought the glass to his lips, slowly sipping its contents.

"_Your disobedience will be reprimanded"_

The words repeated over and over in his head until he could no longer take it. The voice sounded muffled and angry- like no one's voice he had ever heard before. The fact that he could not find out where or whom it had come from drove him insane, absolutely bonkers. Of course, he could just be hearing things… but something in his gut told him he should continue to ponder the ominous words. He continued to sip his water while thinking about why such strange words would have been spoken to him.

The ice cubes in the glass clanked against the inside of the cup as Jack took the final sip of his precious water. Suddenly, his head started to ache tremendously, along with his chest. He put the glass down on his lap and held his head, groaning in pain. He grabbed the cup to put it back on the nightstand so he wouldn't break it, his muscles aching as he stretched his arm to set the glass down. He noticed something odd about the bottom of the cup. It was… mysteriously dark. At a closer glance, he found that indeed it was darker. Black sand crystals covered the bottom of the glass.

_Oh no…_

Jack immediately picked the glass up and launched it at the wall, screeching as memories came flooding back into his mind. He threw the blankets off of him and tried to get off the bed to escape, only to find his right ankle was shackled to the footboard of the bed. Jack's eyes widened in fear as everything came back to him. Pitch's torture, the horrifying nightmares… Pitch taking him from the hospital wing of the North Pole.

Pitch.

Jack's chest heaved as he looked town at his half naked body to find his bandages had not been changed. He choked when he realized he was only in his boxers.

Footsteps could be heard down the hallway, causing Jack to freeze in terror. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion-the wooden door creaked open, allowing light from whatever was behind it to flood in. Jack quickly yanked the covers back on him, trying to hide his body from further embarrassment. Sure enough, a terrifyingly familiar black leather boot made its way through the door, followed by a long, dark torso covered in an onyx colored cloak. Jack did not have to see the figures face to know who it was.

"Jackie! You're finally awake," Pitch glanced at the broken shards of glass on the floor. "oh that wasn't very nice! That was an antique from…" he put his hand on his head, pretending to think. "oh what does it matter!"

"Pitch what the hell was in that water-"

Not even two seconds later, the man was beside Jack's bed, his hand on the boy's throat. Jack's lungs screeched for air, but Pitch's grip was merciless.

"Let's just say… I hope you enjoy feeling _hot._" Pitch's smirk terrified Jack to death. But before the helpless boy could muster a whimper of fear, his entire being was engulfed in a heat which he had never experienced before. Only one thought crossed his mind as he stared up as Pitch's face.

_I'm going to die here. _

_**Ehhhhhh…. Review? I'll love you.**_


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